Welcome to Mary Ann & Tim's travelog for New Mexico.
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MA & T in New Mexico

21 days' driving, 2958 miles.

Highlights

Hiking: Mesa Verde Spruce Tree House trail, Osha trail in Cloudcroft and the
Willie White / Wills Canyon trail also in Lincoln National Forest in the
Sacramento Mountains. NB all high country to avoid the heat.

Culture: Pueblo (Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque, Mesa Verde,
Chaco Canyon, Acoma, Western New Mexico Museum in Silver City for the transition
to agriculture), Apache (Zuni, Canyon de Chelley: "Canyon d'shay" whence the
Navajo were forced on their Long March by Kit Carson), Spanish-Mexican, and a
stop at the Santa Fe Opera - roofed but open - which makes us want to return
just for a performance.

Art: Georgia O'Keeffe limited to the outside of her house in Abiquiu (we did
not book a tour; no photos) and a limited collection at her museum in Santa Fe
(it's preparing a new show); stops in Madrid and Dixon; the Harwood Museum in
Taos; Museum of Contemporary Native Art in Santa Fe; in the air and everywhere.

Physics: Bradbury Museum in Los Alamos, National Solar Observatory on Sacramento
Peak, Museum of Space History in Alamogordo (and the White Sands Missile museum
was shut down for the duration by the Tea Party), Very Large Array radio
telescope.

Geology: the Valles Caldera of a supervolcano which blew 1.6 million years ago
and intermittently until 1.2 million years ago, throwing rocks as far as Kansas
and depositing 900 feet of ash layered with lava under Los Alamos and at
Bandolier National Monument: hence the mesas and tent rocks all around. The
caldera collapsed during the subsequent eruptions in concentric rings, like an
upside-down cribbed roof, creating all the small mountains within.

Biology: elk closeup (by binoculars) at Valles Caldera, with three impressive
males, one dominant; mule deer crossed in front of us at the VLA; ponderosa and
pinyon pines, and white fir in the high lands; juniper, Joshua trees, chamisa,
yucca, cactus and many unidentified flowers whose photos we do not display here.

Food: Jalapeno's in Santa Fe was a treat. The setting of Gabriel's outside
Santa Fe was great and the meal good although we soon ceased seeking out
enchiladas, fajitas and hot peppers. Good crepe lunch in a La Fonda hotel
franchise in Santa Fe. We had three suppers at two different Flying Stars for
light relief, three meals (two takeout) from the Cloud Cafe in Cloudcroft, two
lunches at Ruby K's in Los Alamos and a good Japanese meal there at the Origami.

Pleasant surprises: Casita Chamisa in Los Ranchos de Albuquerque has a
fascinating history, as well as archaeology, which Arnold told us some of;
Silver City provided lots to see and learn, and was the only place where our
restaurant waiters engaged us in (informed) political discussion; the Silver
River Adobe Inn is a riverside oasis in Farmington and David and Diana gave us
much interesting and useful guidance to the region.